1. Lionel Bowen was the deputy leader of the Australian Labor Party from 1977 to 1990 and served as the sixth deputy prime minister of Australia in the Hawke government from 1983 to 1990.
22 Facts About Lionel Bowen
1. 2.
Lionel Bowen served in the Australian Army during World War II and subsequently studied law at the University of Sydney.
3.
Lionel Bowen was elected mayor of Randwick in 1948 and served in the New South Wales Legislative Assembly from 1962 to 1969.
4.
Lionel Bowen served as Postmaster-General, Special Minister of State and Minister for Manufacturing Industry in the Whitlam government, before being elected deputy leader to Bill Hayden in 1977.
5.
Lionel Bowen retained the position when Bob Hawke was elected leader in 1983 and became deputy prime minister after Labor won the 1983 election.
6.
Lionel Bowen served as Minister for Trade and Attorney-General until his retirement from politics in 1990, and was later chair of the National Gallery of Australia.
7.
Lionel Bowen's father left the family when Bowen was aged 10 years and Bowen's mother looked after her invalid brother and elderly mother, while working as a cleaner.
8.
Lionel Bowen was educated at Cleveland Street public school, Marcellin College Randwick and Sydney University where he graduated with a LLB in 1946 and became a solicitor.
9.
Lionel Bowen served in the Second Australian Imperial Force from 1941 to 1945, reaching the rank of corporal.
10.
Lionel Bowen was elected to Randwick Council and became Mayor in 1948.
11.
Lionel Bowen served in the New South Wales Legislative Assembly from 1962 to 1969, representing Randwick, before being elected to the Parliament of Australia in 1969, to the seat of Kingsford Smith in the House of Representatives.
12.
Lionel Bowen played a relatively quiet role in politics, preferring to work behind the scenes.
13.
When Whitlam resigned as Labor leader after his defeat at the 1977 election, Lionel Bowen contested the party leadership but was defeated by Bill Hayden and became Deputy Leader.
14.
Lionel Bowen retained this position when Bob Hawke became Leader in February 1983.
15.
When Hawke won the March 1983 election, Lionel Bowen became Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Trade in the first Hawke Ministry.
16.
In 1988, Lionel Bowen sponsored four referendums to reform the Australian Constitution, but all were defeated.
17.
Lionel Bowen retired from federal politics prior to the March 1990 election, and was succeeded as Deputy Prime Minister by Paul Keating.
18.
Lionel Bowen served as Chairman of the National Gallery of Australia between 1990 and 1995 and shared a strong interest in horseracing.
19.
Lionel Bowen lived in the same home in Kensington for 73 years.
20.
Lionel Bowen was given a state funeral on 11 April 2012.
21.
The Family Court of Australia and the Federal Magistrates Court are located in the Lionel Bowen Building in Goulburn Street, Sydney.
22.
Lionel Bowen Park is situated in the suburb of Mascot.